There's a lot we could say right now. We could point to a recent LA Times Highway 1 blog post about how kids today are so into social mediasitting on their butts in front of the computer that they don't want or need cars. Or, we could talk about how awesome robo-technology like this (you'll see it all after the jump) would be a great way to bring back Group B or CanAm -- races deemed "too dangerous" for human being to compete in. Or we could just point out that we've seen Terminator 3 and we know how these things begin (and end), so excuse us if we run off to hide in cave up in the Sierra Nevadas.
But really, what you've got here is an iPhone controlling a minivan via an application called iDriver. That's right, an iPhone controlling a minivan. You got your control for the gas, the brakes and a steering wheel icon where you put your left thumb and twist it around to steer the minivan. Actually, that's not totally true. Your thumb stays still. The user must actually twist the iPhone around to steer.
The best part? The minivan beams images of what lays ahead directly back to the iPhone so you can see what the vehicle's pointing at, although there are a couple features notable by their absence. First, can you turn off the third row AC while starting the Veggie Tales DVD for the hundred billionth time? Second, any contingency plan at all for what happens when the iPhone rings and you have to take the call? You can't exactly hit pause. Oooh -- what if the iPhone's battery goes dead? Interesting, no? Full video, after the jump.
Seatbelts have been spun as fashion items before, but not like this. In an effort to counteract the low take-rate of seatbelts in the United Arab Emirates, the Salama Road Safety Public Awareness Initiative will be launching soon. The initiative will adorn the potential life savers with haute couture logos like Gucci, as well as the logos of sports teams, flags, and so on as a way to make buckling up suddenly hip to young motorists.
Abu Dhabi's Health Authority (HAAD) cites figures that it can entice more than the current 11% of Emiratis to click the buckle if it appeals to the citizens senses of pride or style. Peer pressure to avoid belts was also cited by respondents to the HAAD's as a reason for not belting. The idea may not work, but it's worth a shot to flip the script on the fashion conscious and turn seatbelts from lame to haute couture.
We've only had a few months to get to know the new BMW M3, but the 2009 model has already gone under the knife. For 2009, the M3 sedan gets the revised taillights that originally debuted on the 328i and 335i, but the nip and tuck up front won't carry over as the M3's fascia different from its lesser siblings.
In addition to the new iDrive controller that's filtering down from the 7-series, the 2009 M3 will be offered in a new color, Le Mans Blue, which has only been available on other models.
BMW has unveiled photos and details pertaining to the facelifted, Euro-spec 2009 3 Series sedan and wagon. We touched on the visual updates yesterday, but to recap, the car sports a revised front fascia, a new hood, restyled mirrors, and reshaped taillamps. The changes are subtle, but good. Inside, the new iDrive trickles down to the 3, which also gets BMW ConnectedDrive in-car internet, as well as an 80-gig hard drive. The 3 Series sedans and wagons are available with 6-speed manual or automatic transmissions. The 7-speed DCT doesn't make it into the four- and five-doors at this time, but it becomes available on the 335i coupe and convertible. Read on after the jump as we run down the model variants and engine offerings.
BMW has officially announced the details pertaining to the 5th generation 7 Series, so let's cut right to the chase. In Europe, there are five models arriving on the market in November of this year: the 730d; the 740i and Li; and the 750i and Li. The latter two are powered by the same twin-turbo 4.4L V8 that debuted in the X6. In the U.S.-market 7 Series, the turbo eight is rated at 400 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque, and it is the sole engine option being made available. If you want a BMW 7 Series in America, it will be a 750.
Europeans get more choices. The 730d's 3.0L diesel I6 pumps out 245 horses with nearly 400 lb-ft of torque. Despite the grunt, it boasts a combined fuel economy number of 32.6 U.S. miles per gallon (39.2 Imperial). The 740 models are powered by the now-familiar 3.0L twin-turbo gasoline engine. In the 7, the 3.0TT's power output is 326 horses and 332 lb-ft -- enough to hustle the 740Li from 0 to 62 mph in six seconds flat. All the engines are connected to a six-speed automatic.
We've already gotten a sneak peak of what the 2009 BMW 7-series will look like on the outside ahead of its official launch, but the interior – and iDrive in particular – is still veiled in a cloak of secrecy. However, Bimmerfile has supposedly gotten the inside dope on the new multi-function brushed aluminum mole.
According to Bimmerfile, the new iDrive interface will take a cue from one of our favorite in-dash control units – Audi's MMI – with a new interface that has a similar list design and selection system. The screen resolution is higher, which makes the maps and text "more visually appealing" and the submenus are reportedly "more like bookmarks," which should facilitate an easier flow of information.
The new display will also allow show maps in full screen, rather than the split screen in the previous version of iDrive, and radio and CD functions are now available in two separate menus. When playing a CD, the current song will be displayed in a "frame" at the top of the screen, with the list of tracks shown below it.
The major revision, aside from a new phonebook contact list that allows for multiple numbers, is the date, time and radio station bar migrating from the iDrive screen into a central mounted display nestled between the two gauges on the dash. This is one feature that Audi's MMI has had for a few years and is a very welcome addition to the new iDrive. We'll hopefully have official information about the new system in a few days.
These days, technology and customization go hand-in-hand. Laptop computers and MP3 players now come in a rainbow of colors and your computer's operating system can be made to suit your unique preferences. BMW has big plans in store for its oft-criticized iDrive system which would make it and the vehicle in which it's installed extremely customizable as well. Simple choices such as color schemes and screensavers for the iDrive's graphical user interface pale in comparison to the ability to adjust transmission shift points and engine boost levels in an effort to either increase fuel economy or improve overall performance. Multiple users will be able to make their own adjustments and save their settings and the car will know the driver based on which key fob is in close proximity.
There are way too many new features planned for iDrive than there is space in this post to display them. For the complete and exhaustive rundown, click here. Thankfully, changes will be accessible from a web-enabled computer, which should simplify the in-car user interface somewhat. Rest assured, though, BMW's iDrive, already overcomplicated in the opinion of many, won't be disappearing from its dash-mounted perch anytime soon.
Promising to make automotive navigation systems "easier, faster, and more convenient to use," BMW is (finally) rolling out its Google-partnered "Myinfo" service in North America (Europeans received BMW's similar "ConnectedDrive" late last year). With a click of a mouse from the Google Maps web site on your computer, up to 10 destinations may be automatically sent to the navigation system of the BMW Assist-equipped model (yes, there is no need to use the iDrive controller to painstakingly plug them in). The telemetry may be sent while the vehicle is parked, or while driving if you have shared your Myinfo data with a relative, friend, or co-worker.
BMW is making Myinfo exclusive to the 2008 BMW X6 right now, however it plans to roll it out across the lineup in 2009. Inputting address and destination data into any navigation system has always been grievous, so we welcome any technology that allows remote, one-click, uploading. BMW's system joins the upcoming eNav feature for GM's OnStar service, which works with MapQuest instead of Google Maps.
During the 2008 New York Auto Show we took a short cab ride from the Javits Center to the hotel, and our driver straddled lanes, blew lights, and narrowly missed around three dozen cars. That's nothing compared to this video of a Baghdad cab ride from hell. Photographer Steve Bent of The Sunday Times was traveling to a shoot in an old Nissan 4x4 with a driver and a man he only refers to as the "boss" in the front seat. Bent needed to get to his shoot during morning traffic, and the driver went so far as to pull a Ronin, driving the wrong way down one-way streets while leaning on the horn.
That's kind of nuts, but then the boss man pulls out a 9mm pistol and starts waving it around so other drivers could get the hint that they really needed to move. The "boss" even fires to drive the message home just seconds before arriving at an army checkpoint, where his carries on a completely normal conversation with the soldiers, who seem not at all surprised at the gunplay. When asked why he fired his pistol, the "boss" explained the driver in front of them wouldn't get out of the way. That was enough for the soldiers, who then waved them through the checkpoint, according to Bent. In New York, a move like this would get your name in the paper and your butt in a jail cell. In Iraq, it gets you to your destination on time. Follow the jump to watch for yourselves. The good stuff starts about a minute in, so be patient.
